Ideas to Action:
Independent research for global prosperity
Nigeria is proposing to transfer a 10 percent stake in the national oil company to delta communities; citizens of the delta would then be entitled to cash benefits, delivered through a trust-type mechanism. Read about it here.
That would be a real live breakthrough on a good idea proposed in CGD papers for Iraq and Ghana.
Bono argues in Sunday’s New York Times that President Obama has already taken major and very welcome steps to “rebrand” America in the eyes of the world. How? By making this statement at the United Nations:
“We will support the Millennium Development Goals, and approach next year’s summit with a global plan to make them a reality. And we will set our sights on the eradication of extreme poverty in our time.”
In response to my post of two weeks ago, Kiva yesterday overhauled the page on kiva.org that explains how Kiva works. Matt Flannery, Kiva's CEO and co-founder, tweeted:
Spent afternoon with Jeremy, Gerard and Premal making the site more transparent: http://www.kiva.org/about/how
Some impressions from the World Bank-IMF meetings, held last week in Istanbul, where the views of the mosques are magnificent and the traffic is truly terrible!
In a surprise New York Times op-ed last weekend, Senators Lindsey Graham (R-SC) and John Kerry (D-MA) announced a joint initiative on climate change.
The proposal mixes the good (I am glad it finally spells out that only carbon capture and storage turns coal into “clean coal”) with the bad. Still, it is welcome news that the Senate may finally be able to “count to sixty” and pass some kind of legislation to reduce emissions.
[I am honored to host Matt Flannery as my first guest blogger. My October 2 post about Kiva generated copious commentary and tweeting. Accepting a guest strays somewhat from the construct of this blog, but seems highly appropriate in this case.--David Roodman]
Hello Everyone,
This is Matt Flannery, Co-Founder and CEO of Kiva.
I recently read and enjoyed David’s article “Kiva Is Not Quite What It Seems”. The article is well-written and thoughtful, and has generated a lot of passionate responses. I'm writing here because I thought it would be helpful to hear from Kiva, as part of this dialogue, to increase understanding about what Kiva does and where it is going.
I see Kiva as a public property, “owned”, in a sense, by its three main constituents---the entrepreneurs, the lenders and the MFI partners, all of whom we serve. It is a delicate balance to serve all three at once. Sometimes it may seem that, for a particular decision, one has to benefit at the expense of the others. However, this is a short-sighted way of looking at things.
I firmly believe that, in the long run, each of Kiva’s constituencies want the others to be well-served, as they are all inter-connected, and rely on each other in their shared efforts towards poverty alleviation. What is needed to create this environment of mutual support is rich communication, promoting greater understanding around the challenges and needs of each constituent.
The Kiva website serves as the hub for that communication to take place. However, large gaps in communication still remain. We at Kiva have a long way to go to increase the level of understanding between the three parties and this article sheds some light on certain areas where we can improve.
This Saturday the world will observe the International Day of the Eradication of Poverty. Here in the U.S., we will likely be marking it in the absence (still!) of a USAID Administrator charged with the responsibility of voicing the development implications of and strategies for U.S. engagement in the world. Almost one year into an administration that ran on a serious, integrated, elevated global development platform, there is still no leader for that important agenda. Or is there?
This is a joint posting with Cindy Prieto.
Since the coup ousting Honduran president Manuel Zelaya last June, the international community has responded with strong words and a mix of mostly mild actions. The Organization of American States (OAS) unanimously voted to suspend Honduras when the de facto regime ignored its demand for the immediate reinstatement of Zelaya, and the UN General Assembly has also adopted a resolution denouncing the coup. The United States and European Union have halted some forms of non-humanitarian aid. But despite some calls for action , the United States and other major trade partners have yet to adopt trade sanctions or to freeze the coup leaders' assets.
Commentary Menu